Starfox: Cerinian Hopes
by FenrirAlpha
Summary: Fox crash lands on Cerinia after a stunt that screws up his Arwing. After that he has a chance encounter and subsequent beating. Krystal needs more than a hero. She needs a hope for her people in their darkest moment. Fox/Krystal eventually. With some other characters making a splash in this new adventure. Rating is only T but be warned of possible nudity and some dark themes.
1. Chapter 1

Another whim of mine after I saw a, rather stunning, bit of fanart from someone called Miles-DF. Be warned for whoever looks him up, he has also made porn. Just a heads up. I just saw it on google and wanted to write a story based on it. Again, this is a whim, but I am going to be making more than 1 chapter. Just don't expect a steady stream of chapters. I'm not that good or creative to be able to pump a chapter out a week.

~Landing~

"To whichever god is up there watching over me…this isn't funny asshole."

Fox was not having a good day. As he stared down at the main source of his frustration, he gave a weary sigh and pulled his comm device from his back pocket before fiddling with it. A useful device made by his teammate and good friend Slippy Toad, it acted not only as an emergency comm link, but also a diagnostic device to each pilot's personal Arwing.

Fox huffed as he sent his message to the GreatFox and activating the hailing beacon built inside before switching the device to find out exactly what was wrong with his ride.

' _Although,'_ Fox thought, ' _I have a pretty good idea of exactly one issue.'_

Looking at his Arwing planted firmly into the ground and mud, it was obvious to anyone that it was stuck, and would need either a team of tough guys to drag it out, or another vehicle to pull it out.

The tod looked back down at his device, watching the loading bar slowly inch its way along the screen. He sighed tiredly as he though back to how he even wound up on this, admittedly very lovely world.

* * *

 _Fox looked along his dashboard and flight controls carefully, taking in every readout and spec presented. All looked normal._

 _Gazing out his cockpit to his left he saw Slippy flying alongside in his own arwing. Behind them both, the GreatFox, with Peppy at the helm._

 _Reaching forward, Fox flipped the comm on, "Peppy, give us another run down on this job."_

 _The comm fizzed for a moment as the old hare's face popped up on the monitor, "Listen up. General Pepper has requested that we look into these reports of smugglers taking an unusual route near that planet there."_

 _The team looked up at a little green and blue planet floating in the endless vacuum. Previously made radio scans showed that there was no technology on it, at least none that gave off the impression of higher intelligence. It looked very similar to Corneria and his home planet Papetoon if Fox thought about it. Even down to the gravity well._

 _"Reports also make mention of a cluster of asteroids circling the planet, so keep that in mind should things get messy."_

* * *

A low growl came to Fox's throat as he reminded himself of his predicament. Focusing back on his diagnostic, he was both relieved and aggravated to see what the damage was.

Both the life support and the g-diffusers were hit, not beyond repair but far more serious than he would be able to do with only his rudimentary knowledge. Which, he had already figured would be one of his issues. The real problem laid in the engine.

The scans showed that the fuselage had a puncture and an obstruction.

Pocketing the device, Fox made his way around his arwing to the point of entry, before immediately seeing the problem. A small, but thin crystalline formation had punctured his arwing's armor plating.

Another growl escaped his throat as he remembered that stunt he pulled which he most assuredly knew was the reason for said puncture.

* * *

 _"Well lookie who wants to play. All glorious Starfox hisself."_

 _Fox looked down at his display. Giving the stupid mutt on the other end a grimace as the Doberman grinned with horrendously yellow teeth._

 _"Yep. That's me. I'm Starfox. Not Fox McCloud," Fox drawled in an unamused and rather bored tone._

 _Any other day Fox would have gone back and forth with this dog until eventually shooting him down. There were however a couple problems preventing him from that._

 _One; He had no back up from Slippy considering the dog in question had forced the toad to retreat._

 _Two; the GreatFox could not get a clear shot because the two pilots were far too close._

 _Three; the dog actually had some decent skills in the cockpit._

 _So, as it stood, Fox did something reckless, stupid, and should have got him killed._

 _He flew toward the orbiting asteroids._

 _Though in his defense, he did force the dog behind him to crash and seemingly dodged all incoming hazards, until his engines stalled._

 _He signaled to his team that he would have to perform a crash landing, before turning towards the planet. He performed his emergency landing as well as one could. Kept it level, dodged any full collisions, and skimmed his arwing along the canopy of a forest, lowering his momentum significantly, before gravity brought him down entirely into a muddy patch of ground._

* * *

With a sigh of defeated frustration, Fox reached down and pulled the protrusion from his ship, before tossing it to the side and moving back towards the front of his arwing, looking at every dent, scratch, and bend along the nose with a frown.

"Coulda been worse dumbass," he mumbled to himself as he pulled his comm device from his pocket again, "At least the worst you'll have to deal with now is just Peppy's lecture."

He was just about to send the full report to Slippy, when a rustle of leaves and a sudden impact on the ground behind him caught his attention. He swiftly reached down toward his sidearm in his grip when he began to turn-

And stopped the instant his eyes landed on the blue figure crouched down behind him.

Time slowed to a grinding halt for him as he boggled at the…vixen? She was most certainly a "she". Anyone who said otherwise was either blind, dumb, or never saw an actual female before. But, what was she? She had a figure that most women would commit filicide for, he was sure. A slim, but toned waist. A set of hips and bosom that looked like she was made by an actual goddess of beauty. And, a face that was so hauntingly similar to that of a vixen from his own race, which bordered on unreal. Her eyes though, were striking. A soft light blue with specks of green in her irises.

There were a few differences of course, all of them obvious on sight. First of all, her fur was blue. Impossibly blue with a white belly and chest, and white tones in locks of her short hair, the tip of her tail, her muzzle, and these strange markings on her arms and legs. Because she was barefoot, he also saw that she only had three toes, as opposed to his races five. Her claws were also not black or even opal, but seemed to be gold. Whether this was because of a polish or not Fox couldn't tell.

A second passed as he gathered all this information, before his cheeks warmed considerably. Fox could count on one hand how many articles of clothing she had on. A chest band, a loincloth, some golden bracers on her calves and forearms, some wrappings on her tail, and a necklace. If she knew what modesty was, she didn't show any.

Another second had passed as he slowly turned toward her. Only one thought past through his head as he stared at this, strikingly beautiful vixen (?).

 _'Woah…_ '

His admiration was short lived after that, because after rising only slightly to her feet, she charged at him with what looked like a golden spear.

His eyes widened before he turned and parried the tip out of his immediate danger. The vixen however simply spun with the parry and planted a strong kick to his stomach, leaving Fox kneeling and gasping for air in front of her. An advantage she quickly took as she knocked his gun from his hand with her spear, swinging the blunt end upwards at his chin, and knocking him onto his back with a groan.

After opening his eyes, he came face to face with her weapon of choice, idly noticing the light vapor coming from the tips core. He looked back at his attacker and gaped once more as he got a better look at her face.

First, she wasn't happy, as her frown and actions had clearly shown, but she didn't seem furious.

"Nxe uho yei? Uho yei edo ev kxo jby tolacj ukkusbadw eih laccuwoj?"

Fox blinked. Then he gave her a confused look. For some reason he had been expecting cornerese, though that was stupid he noted absently.

The vixen pressed her spear closer to his throat, to which he yipped and started to crawl away from slowly, if only so that she didn't hit him again.

"Sorry. Could you say that again?"

The vixen looked at him as if he had two heads before barking out a bit louder than before, "Nxe uho yei? Udjnoh mo den eh ro jodk ke yeih mujkoh ad Neraxus!"

Fox could only shake his head and hold his hands up in surrender. "Look miss, I'm sorry if I…crashed into something of yours, but I swear I mean no harm," he said in the gentlest tone he could manage.

The vixen lowered her spear gently, but only so she could step closer and inspect him with her suspicious eyes. Fox didn't move. For all intents and purposes, this was a first contact scenario, and the last thing he wanted to do was rile up a primitive who held him under a knife, so to speak.

Her eyes had seemed to lose their cold edge, but still kept her suspicion. He watched her carefully, his hands still up. She in turn, watched him just as carefully, before slowly taking one of her one hands and reaching for his head. Fox did not move. He would not move even as she rest her hand on the side of his head. She had remarkably soft hands. _'They almost feel like…my mother's…hands…'_ his thoughts slurred and his eyes grew heavy, before he fell backwards, his mind going black.

* * *

Krystal let her hand drop to her side as she stood up and over the orange…cerinian? He certainly looked like the men from her village. Tall, broad, and clearly built if his body was anything to go by. If his fur had been any of the colors from her people she would have mistaken him as one of her own, how similar he looked.

She let out a sigh as she strode back towards a nearby tree, reaching up with her staff and knocking her horn from the branches. She pressed the instrument to her lips and blew as hard and loud as she could, making the note reach high into the sky before fastening it to her side once more.

It had been a trying few months for the blue vixen and her people. Just last winter, a group of metal birds had descended from the sky, spitting fire from their mouths and dropping strange devils with stranger weapons spitting that same fire amongst her people.

Of course her and her fellow warriors and huntsmen were able to repel the devils eventually, but only after losses to the invading side had been too much. Then they got smarter, and started attacking from the sky first with their metal birds, wasting huts, homes, and towers.

The worst part of it all was that these demons seemed to enjoy the slaughter, before they started kidnapping the women and children. They left the men wounded or for dead, laughing and cheering for their "success."

Krystal felt her blood boil and turned back toward the tod, wanting to kill him and be done with him.

But, she couldn't. This was the first devil they had been able to capture alive and they needed information about where her people were being held, if they were still alive at all.

 _'The chief will be able to find out from his mind.'_ She thought. Before realizing, his mind was surprisingly easy to overwhelm, almost as if he had no barriers erected. And if that were true, that meant the others were weak of mind as well.

A smile spread across her muzzle as she thought of this new advantage they had. If the chief could pull this tod's strange language from him, he could spread it to the whole village, giving them a chance to read the demons minds in the midst of battle.

She almost jumped for joy at the prospects before she felt a few other warriors approach. Turning toward the demon she subdued, she stood next to him, looking down at his handsome face.

"Shame he's a sky devil. He's actually quite handsome," she muttered to herself before turning to the two warriors step from the foliage.

"Krystal? Is that one of the devils?" One of them asked cautiously.

"Is it dead?" the other asked immediately with an angry growl.

"No Arlet. He is not dead. We should bring him to the chief to see if we can learn where our people are being held prisoner," she declared. "I'll need help bringing him back to the village."

The first of the warriors reached into his pouch before pulling out a cord of rope and moving to the prisoner, rolling him over roughly, before tying his arms behind him tightly.

"Let's go then," the second one, Arlet, huffed in a hurried tone, "This is a chance Krystal has brought that must be taken advantage of immediately."

The first warrior, being the biggest amongst the three, hoisted the red male up and over his shoulder, following after Arlet with Krystal bringing up the rear, after she had grabbed his strange metal…things. As they marched back home, Krystal studied the red male sleeping. He was so strange, much like the other sky devils, in the sense that he was obviously otherworldly, but he looked so similar. He was obviously still a threat, to her and her people, but even when she had overpowered him she felt as if she had gotten lucky, in both senses.

When she had delved into his mind she had caught glimpses, however fleeting, of his life. He was a fighter, much like herself. But, he wasn't cold and unfeeling like she thought he would be. His spirit was warm, like that of a campfires, yet clearly spoke of an underlying resolve to fight back twice as hard as a raging inferno. She had also sensed pain in him. A pain that had healed, yet still present. Her curiosity was gnawing at her. She started wanting to see more, which led to a small seed of doubt to take root in her conscience. Was he actually one of those devils? Or was he something else.

Krystal shook her head as she stared forward once more. _'Whatever he is, we will learn soon enough,'_ she thought as her village came into view.

It had seen much better days. At one point, she remembered fondly, it had been a paradise for all who dwelled within its cluster of huts and homes. People would meander about the market streets, safe within the stone walls, from the wilds. The towers once stood tall yet welcoming as traders and visitors made travel to her home.

Now though, the walls and towers were in ruins. The huts either burned or broken. And the streets, though littered with the sick and homeless, not as lively as before, with a solemn and hopeless air hanging over head.

The sky devils did not attack routinely, but they did attack faster than her fellow Cerinians could build. Her people were tired and losing more and more hope with each new invasion. Food, while shared willingly without cost, was slowly becoming scarcer by the day. Krystal looked along the streets and felt her heart break once again at a male she didn't know just stare into the sky, defeated.

She did notice that many of her people start to look at their prisoner and felt, more than heard, feelings of anger, fear, and hate. She couldn't blame them. They wanted him and all his accomplices dead and gone. A few months ago when her own mother was taken, she would have agreed with them.

But, she was growing more and more desperate with every passing day. She needed _something,_ _anything that could help bring her mother and the others back._ So, she stayed her hand from delivering the red man's death.

She held her head higher now, as the chief's home came into view. A crowd had started following them now as they stepped inside. The chief was seated on his chair, looking over the map of the surrounding area at his feet, before looking up at the three newcomers, before frowning at the red man bound over the tall one's shoulder.

"A prisoner?"

Krystal stepped forward then, giving him a small bow at her waist, her spear planted into the ground. "Chief. I found this one on the border of our forest. His bird is apparently dead as it lay in the ground unmoving. I subdued this one in hopes that we could learn from his mind where we can find our missing." She then looked up at his withered face, the fur along his muzzle thick and long after years of growth, and his eyes tired and grey, but still steeled with resolve. "I also learned that his mind is surprisingly weak. All it took was a single suggestion and he fell to slumber."

A collective but subdued gasp rippled throughout the hut and the crowd behind them as she spoke. She felt then a collective spark of hope resound throughout her people. The chief, betrayed none of his emotions, but nodded all the same, and gestured to a wooden post in the middle of his room. The red man was carried over before being bound tight against the oaken post, before being given a wide berth.

The chief looked at the red man, his expression cold, but otherwise blank, before turning to Krystal with a subdued smile. "You have done well young warrior."

Krystal smiled and bowed once more before stepping forward next to the red man. She lowered her staff to his chest but made no move further until she heard the chief speak again. "Wake him up."

She nodded only once as she bent forward slightly and rested her palm on his head before focusing her mind once more.

* * *

Never before had Fox woken up with such a throbbing hangover. And he and Falco had done some stupid shit with drinking games. Shaking his head, he tried reaching up to rub the sleep from his eyes, but was startled to find that he couldn't move his arms. His eyes shot open swiftly, his migraine disappearing with his revelation as he began to struggle against his bonds for all of a second, before he felt that familiar spear at his chest.

He looked up, and gaped as he saw a whole mob of blue and indigo foxes. Some were tall, some short. Some young, some old. But there was one thing he noticed they all shared. They were all very good looking. Even the men looked like they belonged on a modeling vid. He also noticed that there were significantly more men than women surrounding him.

"Tomed." A voice that sounded weathered drew his attention. He looked toward the source and saw what was clearly the eldest of those gathered. He wasn't massive, but he was tall. His build defined him as an old boxer who had long since retired. He wore no shirt, none of the men did, but he wore a loincloth and skirt wrappings around his waist, and those same golden bands he saw everyone wear. He also had a headpiece that looked to be made of a clear sapphire and silver. If Fox looked closer, he noticed that the crystals were the same as the one that crippled his arwing.

"Yei uho eih fhajedoh xoho. Uj jisx, no nacc kubo nxuk Yei bden udt ijo ak ke julo eihjocloj udt eih celot edoj," he said in that strange language of his. Fox opened his mouth to speak and try to gain something here, but was immediately silenced by the vixen and her spear.

He watched the chief kneel in front of him and grasp the top of Fox's head. A small sliver of panic setting into his stomach.

"A sud edcy fhemajo ke ro uj wodkco uj A sud, yok kxaj nacc homuad idfcoujudk," the old man said, before sighing and continuing in a much quieter tone, "Veh ij rekx."

The next thing Fox felt was an uncomfortable tingle all over his head, forcing a grunt and a gasp from him. It wasn't so painful that he wished for death. It was more akin to having a headache that would constantly throb.

The worst part however, was that he started seeing things from his past, as vividly as if he were reliving them. He saw his and Falco's duel on Titania, Andross' defeat on Venom, his father's funeral, and his mother's car exploding. All of it at once.

Fox refused to shed a tear, if anything, this only started to piss him off. What was going on? Why was this happening? Did this old man do this to him? Why him? All these questions circled in his head when suddenly, it stopped. The pain. The memories. All of it stopping as suddenly as it started.

He looked up at the old man, both angry and confused, at what he saw. He saw sorrow and remorse line the old man's face.

"I ask for forgiveness warrior," the old man said in fluent cornerese that made Fox boggle and gape. "My people are desperate for any glimmer of hope, that we had no choice but to read you."

Read him? Did…did this old man read his mind of all things?! Telepathy?!

"How..?" Fox gasped in bewilderment.

The old man looked down at him, his eyes still sorrowful. "My people, we Cerinians, have always had this power to feel and learn from each other's minds. I am sorry I forced you to relive such pain. But I had to learn your language for a few reasons."

The old man stood and turned to the mob and the vixen that held Fox under guard and shook his head, "Idradt xam, xo aj dek edo ev kxom. Udt xo bdenj dekxadw ev eih odomaoj."

At this, the vixen looked alarmed briefly before turning solemn and bending down to undo Fox's bindings. The rest of the mob, just looked crestfallen, before slowly and sullenly exiting the chief's hut.

"What…did you tell them?" Fox asked as he stood, rubbing his wrists gently.

The old man turned to him, a weak and almost broken smile on his lips.

"My people are under constant attack. From those who hail where you come from, the stars," the old man said as he took his seat again. Fox followed him and stood before the chief, remaining silent. "My name is Argoran, cheiftan of this village. It is my duty to keep the peace, keep my people safe, and to provide prosperity. But I could do nothing against the sky devils.

"This last winter, invaders from the skies descended upon us, with weapons that spit fire and lightning. At first were able to drive them back, and we thought the last of them." Argoron shook his head slowly, "We were wrong. They returned with stronger weapons, and these ships of your peoples, and started to lay waste to our homes, take our young and our women. And we are not alone in this. Other villages across our world have been under fire as well."

Fox's brows furrowed as things became clearer in his mind before looking at the vixen to his right. She had not looked at him, her lovely face no longer having that same fire when he first saw her, before turning back to Argoron.

"And you caught me thinking I was one of them," he trailed off. "You were trying to find your people."

Argoron nodded slowly before gesturing to the vixen, "We have all suffered from these demons. Krystal here has lost her mother, Sapphire, to these monsters. I have lost my son and daughter to them myself. We had hoped…" a heavy sigh escaped him, "What we hoped for doesn't matter anymore. You have given us a chance to fight back against them with their own minds now. For that you have my apologies again, and my most sincere gratitude."

Argoron turned to the vixen, Krystal again, "Krystal."

Krystal's head perked up as she stepped forward.

"Hokihd xaj ovvoskj ke xam. Xo nacc doot kxom ke hokihd xemo."

Krystal nodded only once before pulling Fox's communicator and his blaster to him. Fox looked at her and felt guilty. These people meant no harm to him. They just needed help. So carefully, he took his items back, holstering his blaster, before opening his commlink.

"This Fox calling GreatFox. Come in, GreatFox."

The screen fizzled with static before showing an image of Peppy, who looked nonplussed to say the least.

"So help me god Fox if you take that long to call in after a stunt like that again I'll make _damn_ sure that you never get in the cockpit for a good long while. You have any idea how much repairs on an arwing cost?! And don't even get me started on Slippy's upgrade parts and whatnot-"

"Peppy save the lecture for later we got a much bigger problem than just some smugglers. There are natives on this planet and they're under threat of constant attack."

The old hare immediately sobered up and reigned in his temper, replacing his previous expression of anger with one of military professionalism.

"Give me the short version Fox."

Fox did just that, telling Peppy all that he learned so far planet side. The attacks, the kidnappings, and the telepathy. The old hare sat quiet for a second before nodding slowly.

"I'm sending the Landmaster and Slippy down there for backup. I, in the meantime, will contact General Pepper and see if we can't get some reinforcements, and possibly some provisions for the natives." Fox nodded his agreement. "What I need you to do is keep that village secure for the next couple days while Pepper and I get everything in order. Good luck Fox. Peppy out."

The commlink cut out then, allowing Fox to turn back toward Argoron, who had been listening in on the conversation, his face betraying a glimmer of hope.

"Did I hear all that correctly? You can help us?" His voice was raw, like he was holding back every emotion he had. Even Krystal looked worriedly at her chieftain.

Fox nodded once at Argoron, "Yeah. I'll get as much help as I can. Fact is, the only reason I'm even on this planet is because we got into a fight with some pirates. Pirates that I now think are directly responsible for these attacks. Even if you didn't want my help, I was gonna have to take them down anyway. Only now the mission parameters have changed.

My team and I are small, meaning we can't keep the whole planet safe. But, now that the report is in, we can get you and your people the help we both need."

Argoron stared him down for a second, giving Fox the impression that he was reading his mind now. Fox didn't care at that point. He'd let them see that he was earnest in helping them.

The chief then turned to Krystal and held his hand out to her. "Semo xoho Krystal, A'm weadw ke jxuho ucc kxuk A'lo couhdot vhem Fox."

The blue vixen took a few steps forward before kneeling down in front of her chief and bowing her head. The chief placed his hand atop her head gently before closing his own eyes. A few seconds passed as Fox stood and watched carefully, before both opened their eyes and the vixen stood and turned toward him, a warm and friendly smile on her muzzle.

"My name is Krystal. I am sorry for attacking you, and thank you, with everything that I am, for helping us. You are a better man than I foolishly believed."

For a moment, Fox didn't answer her. He was too busy repeating her voice over and over in his head, it was such a sweet sound. A blush heated his face as he realized he was staring before giving her a goofy smile, to which Krystal giggled at.

 _'God she is so cute.'_ He thought to himself before shaking his head again, reminding himself that his thoughts actively betrayed him on this planet.

"You don't have to apologize Krystal. I get it," he said before holding out his hand for her. She took a step forward and placed her own smaller hand in his before gripping him firmly. He returned the gesture before shaking her hand, his smile still plastered on his muzzle. "My name's Fox. Fox McCloud. Ace pilot and leader of the Starfox team. We'll get your people back to you. I promise."

Krystal smiled wide, a few tears unshed at the corners of her eyes as she looked at Fox, thanking every god and goddess she hadn't killed him.

* * *

"And you're sure it was Starfox?"

In a well-lit room, sitting at a desk with a terminal and folder opened, a Raven sat, looking worried and furious at the nervous hound in front of him.

"Yeah boss. That logo's pretty hard to not recognize. It was Starfox all right."

The Raven took a breath, before pushing his chair back and standing up straight, before walking around his desk. He then sighed, before turning back to the hound. "This changes things. It'll only be a matter of time before the Cornerian forces show up." He paused then, contemplating. "Order all forces to cease the smuggling gig and get them back here. We're getting as many of these natives off world and high tailing it to the next Market. Go. Now."

The hound nodded before bolting out of the door to relay his boss' orders.

The raven picked up the folder, staring at the newest report. So far they had captured hundreds of these primitives, and preliminary tests showed they were telepathic in nature. That made them worth millions a head. It really helped that every single female they had captured was stunningly gorgeous. Gorgeous slaves sold high enough as it was, but these creatures? He and his crew could get top dollar for each one and retire for the rest of their lives in wealth and luxury. He just needed about a hundred more.

He'd have to move fast.

* * *

I should point out now a few things some people might be confused about.

1: This is taking place instead of Adventures yes but I'm keeping the dino language.

2: In the dino language the letter Y is replaced with a zero. Not doing that. Treating the Y the same way as they treat the M.

3: Krystal has a mother and I'll touch on her father in the future, but the name Sapphire isn't mine. I've just seen a bunch of fictions where her mother is called Sapphire and liked the name.

4: Yes they are all telepaths, but I'm not making them overpowered. They can read minds with little effort but when it comes to sharing or taking info and even manipulating their targets are going to require direct contact. I'll touch on this in the actual story later, I'm just saying it here now cuz I don't want any reviews that say "That's not how it works blah blah you're dumb nyeh nyeh." none of that.

Finally, any time in the future of this story that something comes up but don't ACTIVELY explain in the story I'll explain down here.

Hope you enjoyed, if not eh whatever.


	2. Chapter 2

Ok. After I submitted the last chapter I noticed that screwed up my upload. I have re-submitted it with this chapter. Hopefully that fixed a few mistakes. Also, I know I said not to expect a lot of chapters swiftly. That is still true. I just happened to have this chapter already in the works at the time. Any future chapters need to be fleshed out still. They might come sooner, but don't bank on it.

~Preparation~

General Pepper looked at the report at his desk grimly. A new race of intelligent lifeforms. The last time this had happened, the Lylat system had been welcoming the Vulpids, the very race the McClouds hailed from.

But that was a peaceful encounter. This was far from peaceful. Women and children being captured for God only knows what and the rest living in fear and running out of time. He prayed for their safety as he did everything within his power to get them the help they needed.

However…

The facts were that Corneria couldn't spare much in that regard. The Lylat Wars had been devastating across all worlds. The Cornerian Forces were spread thin enough as it was which was why he had Starfox investigate into those smuggler rumors in the first place. As it stood, the best he could offer the Cerinians was a carrier, a handful of fighters, a couple brigades of ground forces and Starfox themselves, without crippling his own defenses.

It wouldn't be enough to free them without finding the pirates base.

The old war hound leaned back in his chair with a weary sigh. In all his forty-seven years of life we had never felt as tired as he did now. He felt much like his forces. Spread thin and run ragged.

Pepper looked to his left, at the picture that stood next to his terminal. He, his wife and his son were at an amusement park with giant grins and bright eyes.

' _How long that's been…'_ he reflected. He looked much younger then. He looked stronger. Back when he was just a sergeant. A smile crept along his muzzle as he looked at his son he was so proud of, before glaring back down at the report.

For a while he just stared at it, before reaching for his terminal and hailing his general on base. The terminal pulled up an image of a middle aged, black furred wolf with sharp yellow eyes.

"Command General Pepper, sir. Fourth General O'Carrel reporting."

"At ease O'Carrel. You've read the report?"

The wolf nodded once, "I have sir. I never thought I'd get to be a part of meeting another alien race. I just wish it was under better circumstances."

"That is precisely why I'm pulling you from your current assignment and sending you to their aid," Pepper gruffed out.

The wolf's eyes widened at such a sudden order. "But…But sir, my forces are part of the defense fleet. If we go, Corneria will be significantly undermanned. I understand that they need help sir, but we're not much better off."

Pepper shook his head slowly. "You read the report. You know that statement isn't true son."

The wolf looked admonished then, but slowly nodded his agreement.

"I'm not sending your entire fleet. Just a portion, roughly twenty percent. You'll also have an extra carrier, a handful of extra fighters, and a token force." Pepper looked at the wolf, a fire settling inside him. "You're right that this will cripple our defenses. But, they have nothing to defend them. They have lost more than I dare to imagine, and by God's grace will I be damned if I don't make sure they get all the help I can give them." He paused then to look at the wolf, seeing the effect his unremarkable speech had brought. He saw that doubt was still there, but he also saw understanding, which was all he needed. "On site you will be in command of all forces. While in command you act with my authority. Understood?"

The wolf looked at him, determined, before raising his hand to his head in a salute. "Yes, sir."

"Then prepare your soldiers General. And make me proud."

* * *

Three days.

It had been three days now since Fox crash landed on Cerinia. Three days to notice exactly what kind of benefit the Cerinians had as telepaths. For one, they only needed a brief moment of contact to share information amongst each other. For two, once the knowledge that Fox and his team were providing more help, the blue foxes immediately started dropping their guard around him, trusting him openly. And finally, as he pulled the Landmaster next to his Arwing, that technical skills that would take weeks to figure out, could be learned in under a day.

Krystal had been learning how the Landmaster worked for when Fox's Arwing was finally fixed.

Of course, "learning" being the operative word. All she had done was pull the skill and know-how from Fox's mind.

The only question that still ran through Fox's mind most of the time, was how did this race of primitive foxes manage to hold off a technologically superior force? Telepathy or not, they should have been easy pickings for pirates. Either the pirates were just lousy at their jobs, or these Cerinians had a couple aces in their hands.

The moment Slippy had touched down with his own Arwing, he and Fox had brought the downed ship to the village, to which ROB and Slippy went straight to work on the repairs.

Fox's Arwing was coming together faster than he thought it would. Granted, most of it was superficial damage, with the exception of the life support and the engine. Slippy and he had both agreed that the G-Diffuser would be the last fix, considering that was mostly so their blood didn't get forced to their feet when they were in a dogfight. Their prosthetics had already taken care of that part long before the equipment was installed on their ships.

"ROB hand me the torch," the toad's voice called out from under the Arwing. The automaton whirred and hissed his hydraulics, replying with a static "affirmative" before handing the toad his requested tool.

"How's it coming Slip'?"

Slippy didn't even pull out from under the ship while replying. "Should be up and battle ready by tomorrow. But it won't be at a hundred percent for another forty-eight hours tops. How're the Landmaster upgrades working?"

"The flight mode felt a bit sluggish but I couldn't tell if that's because of the upgrades themselves or my preference to an actual fighter."

Slippy hummed in that high voice of his, "I'll take a quick look at it tomorrow after your ship. See if there's anything I can do about that."

Fox rolled his shoulders, "Thanks Slippy." His nose twitched then, a strong smell hitting him unpleasantly. He looked around before sniffing at his own self, before shaking his head quickly as the stench he exuded hit him full force.

"Out of curiosity Slip, you wouldn't happen to know where Krystal might be. Would you?"

Slippy let out a grunt of effort, before a metallic thud hit the ground, before Slippy replied. "Nope. Haven't seen her. Why?"

"Just wondering where I can at least wash. I haven't had a shower since we landed here. Talk to you later Slip." With that said, Fox turned on his heel and began to stroll through the village.

During his walk, he noticed things that helped him profile the pirates. The first was obviously the women. Every one of them was gorgeous. It didn't help that their fur colors made them exotic, ranging from sky blue to dark indigo, or that their figures could turn every head down Corneria's streets.

The second thing was their telepathic abilities. If they could be trained, or in this particular scenario forced, to reading someone else's mind, there's no limit to what some people could do. Bank accounts robbed completely blind, identities stolen to a point that even the military would fear a breach, not to mention just straight blackmail. For that they would need the younger Cerinians simply because children were more susceptible to threat of injury or, more likely, Stockholm Syndrome.

And finally, the last reason was also obvious. These people were a new race. A person, and Fox used that word loosely, with enough wealth could buy them like pets simply to show off to their buddies and/or cohorts.

A small but sharp snarl escaped his throat at just those reasons. He didn't want to go any further down that line of thought, mostly because the whole village would be able to read him and the last thing they needed was more reasons to fear and lose what little hope they had.

Turning his head behind him, he saw some little girl he had never met following him with big green eyes, similar to his own actually. He offered her a smile and a friendly little wave before a chirp sounded on his comm.

"Peppy. What have you got for me?"

The old hare gave the tod a smirk and a nod, "Good news. Pepper is sending some serious reinforcements. Enough so that we can get some defenses, not just to the villages, but also orbital. They'll be here in less than a standard day he said."

A wide grin stretched across the vulpid's, "I knew we could count on that old war hound."

"And, as an added bonus, he's doubling our usual fee for this. So now we have to get the bastards."

Fox did a fist pump with a subdued "Yes" at the news. "Good. The Greatfox could use some improvements."

Peppy gave him a reproachful look at that, "Not to mention cover the replacement parts for our Arwings. That's good too," he said in that 'told-you-so' tone.

"You still upset over that? No one got hurt and it worked towards everyone's benefit!"

"Don't do it again Fox."

Fox rolled his eyes with a groan before spotting the vixen he'd been looking for. "Fine Peppy I get it. I gotta go now. Call if something comes up." Fox hung up and pocketed the communication device before jogging up to the vixen, who was walking down a street with her staff in hand.

Krystal turned her head swiftly, giving him one of her warm smiles. Fox smiled back before giving her the news he had received, forcing a brighter smile from the blue vixen.

"Fox that's wonderful news. I cannot thank you enough for all you've done."

Fox felt his cheeks warm again, a goofy smile on his muzzle as he scratched the back of his head. "I haven't done anything yet."

Krystal shook her head enthusiastically before grabbing him by his shoulders, making his face jump up a few more degrees, before spinning him around to face the street he just walked down. He didn't really know what she expected him to see. The other Cerinians were walking about yes, some even staring at his machines, Slippy and ROB, but otherwise this village was still a borderline ruin.

"You can't feel it. You aren't born with this gift. Because of that, you have no idea what sort of life you've brought back to my home. But, I can. And I can still not thank you enough for this." Fox felt her hands tighten on his shoulders. He looked back at her, but she wasn't looking at him, she was smiling down at the street, most likely feeling whatever the village was feeling.

The blue vixen looked at him suddenly, smile still present, "But I can still say thank you for this. So thank you."

As was starting to become the norm whenever Fox was around Krystal, the vulpid's face began to heat with a blush. He smiled back sheepishly, before turning toward her. "Well, if you wouldn't mind terribly. The reason I was searching for you in the first place was to know where I can wash out my fur. I'm starting to smell a little rank."

She tilted her head a bit before nodding at him eagerly and grabbing him by his hand. "Of course. The bath houses have been prohibited since the attacks, but there is a stream that we have been temporarily using. I'll take you there." With that, Krystal lead Fox down the street and out past the walls.

Fox did _not_ think about how soft her hand was. He did _not_ wonder if the rest of her body was just as soft. And he most certainly did _not_ imagine anything elicit about Krystal.

He _did_ however, continuously think about burnt toast. It was starting to become a habit of his, since landing on this planet, to think of simple yet unappetizing foods to keep his mind from betraying him.

"Are you hungry as well Fox?"

His head snapped to the blue vixen leading him by the hand. She was looking at him curiously as they walked.

"Oh no no I'm-I'm fine really. Just thinking about…breakfast."

She stared at him for a moment, before shrugging off his strange thoughts and continuing to lead. She still had not let go of his hand as they made their way through the forest. Before long, his ears flicked at the sound of running water. It didn't take long after that before a stream came into view, along with a fresh smell of spring water hitting his nostrils.

"Here we are Fox. Just don't go further up the stream."

"Got it. Thanks for this Krystal," Fox said with an appreciative smile. He didn't have any soap, shampoo, or anything like that, but he just needed to get the dirt and grime off his usually clean fur. So, this stream would be plenty.

He moved over to the water, cupped his hands beneath the surface, and splashed his face. The water was cool, but refreshingly so, not cold as ice. His ears flicked as he heard footsteps behind him. He let loose a sigh as he began shedding his clothes, starting with his shirt, before leaping into the stream.

Luckily for him, his prosthetic legs were high end military grade. Meaning they were made of a rust proof metal, and were sealed so tight that the circuitry would never get damaged by water. So he could still enjoy swimming, bathing, and other aquatic activities, he was just heavier under water. So staying afloat was a bitch, but not impossible, and Fox had always been a good swimmer. Plus, this stream wasn't very deep, only coming up to his chest.

Fox submerged beneath the water after a bit, getting his short hair and the rest of him drenched in the cool water, staying under for just long enough, before breaking the surface with a gasp for air.

A splash caught his ears, triggering his battle instincts and turning around. He didn't see anything. But then, another splash resounded away from him at his left, forcing him to turn suddenly-

-and immediately blush so fiercely he was sure the white of his fur had turned bright red.

Krystal had stripped herself of every bit of revealing clothing she had and decided to join him in the water.

Burnt, blackened, spit on, moldy toast immediately ran through his head over and over like a prayer, as he spun back around, covering his unmentionables.

"K-Krystal?!" he yipped out.

Krystal had turned to look at him, in some part concerned, in other parts confused. First, the most unappetizing pastry had taken root in his head. And second, his eyes had shut immediately at the sight of her. A slight sting had taken to both her pride and her confidence. Everyone in her village had stated that she was a prized gem of beauty, much like her mother. Did Fox find her so repulsive that disgusting looking food was more interesting than her?

"Fox, is something wrong?"

"Why-why are you naked?!"

Now she really was confused. He was naked when he bathed. Did women in his culture not bathe? Or did they bathe with clothing on?

"Because I thought I would wash as well. It's a bit warm today too."

"Yeah you're telling me…" the tod mumbled under his breath. He summoned every bit of willpower, mental fortitude, and determination to _not_ imagine the blue vixen behind him naked.

Now, Krystal felt a bit miffed. Something was wrong with Fox and it clearly had something to do with her. Distress and anxiety literally rolled off him in waves. Feelings he didn't have when she was leading him here. So what was the actual problem? She waded over to him and placed a single hand on his shoulder, to which he immediately flinched, much to her chagrin.

"Fox," the blue vixen said in her kindest tone, "what is wrong? Did I do something to offend you? And if so, what?" she asked.

Fox took in a deep breath, steadying himself, and answered her carefully. "Do men and women usually bathe with each other here on Cerinia?"

Krystal's brow furrowed as she slowly answered, "Yes. Why wouldn't we?"

"You're not worried that something bad could happen? Like someone taking advantage of you or something?"

"…why would they do that? They would share my distress…immediately…" She trailed off as it dawned on her, and a small knowing smile crept along her muzzle. "I'm sorry Fox. I had forgotten that your people lacked the gift we Cerinians share."

Now it was Fox's turn to be confused. What did telepathy have to do with this?

Apparently Krystal had read his mind again as her answer came immediately. "For us Cerinians, reading people is similar to breathing. We are constantly feeling what each other is feeling, hearing what each other is thinking, and seeing what each other is imagining." She removed her hand from his shoulder and moved over to the bank of the stream, where she sat on the edge, letting her feet soak in the cool water.

"These situations you're mentioning…our people couldn't commit them, simply because the backlash from such distress would cause us actual pain. I can't even imagine the ramifications of what our people would do to such an individual, on a community level. Not to mention that, considering that we do indeed read each other constantly, that such a thing couldn't actually happen."

Fox…actually didn't have an argument for that.

Why would she fear the idea of rape, molestation and other such despicable actions, when she can just know if someone would do so to begin with? For all intents and purposes, this race of foxes wore their hearts on their sleeves in the literal sense.

"But if that's the case then why do you wear clothes at all?" he asked.

"Comfort, protection from certain elements, and practicality for when we need to hunt or gather our food."

Fox turned that over in his head a bit, before conceding the point.

"Of course, that doesn't explain why you are apparently afraid of me now," the vixen said, "Am I truly that unsightly to you."

"Oh trust me, that's not even _close_ to the actual reason."

Krystal let out a small chuckle, mostly from exasperation, "Then why are you so afraid to look at me?"

Fox could have answered in a number of ways. He could have said that it was considered rude to ogle and lust after a female without their consent. He could have said that he was raised better by his mother to take advantage of her custom differences to ogle her unabashedly. He could have even said that the he didn't want to be that type of guy, simply because he thought himself as better than that.

Instead, he turned and looked at her face, staring her down and keeping his thoughts as pure as he willed himself.

She was beautiful. There was no other word to describe her. Her body was fit and lean, yet soft and inviting looking. He kept his eyes on her face sure, but she was far enough away now that he could see all of her. And by god what a sight she made. Her blue fur contrasted with the setting beautifully, making her stand out all the more.

And that smile. That same friendly and warm smile that made him weak in his metallic legs.

' _God she's beautiful…'_

His mind had finally betrayed him then. No willpower he summoned could stop that thought from running through his head at that moment.

Of course, she heard him think so, and giggled in her throat. "I'll accept that honest compliment Fox, graciously."

She stood up suddenly, to which Fox actively did turn away with a blush, a fact Krystal would no longer mind, conceding to the fact that it wasn't a norm for his people bathe together. After picking up her clothes and making herself decent again before turning back to him and retaking her spot at the bank.

From her vantage, she gave him her own examination. He was indeed as handsome as she first thought. He was clearly built for a fight, considering his body was lean, with a much defined set of muscles. Not just in his arms either. His back was wide and built, his waist was toned and tighter than a drum, and his hands were tough.

She noticed when she watched him disrobe and jump into the stream that he hadn't removed his leg armor. It didn't seem to bother him obviously and the water wasn't that deep. But, wasn't he trying to get clean?

"Fox," she called to him, feeling his tension lessen considerably when he saw she was back in her huntress' garb, "Why are you still wearing your armor?"

He shot her a confused look before looking down at himself, before realization set in. She meant his legs of course.

"Uh…" He hesitated as he thought out what to say next. "It's a bit of a story… but first, know that these metal bits are my legs, not armor."

She looked at him curiously, but remained silent. And there she sat in silence, as she waited for Fox to elaborate. He didn't say anything for a while, just scrubbed at his fur for a bit as he thought of how to put his experience to words.

"Can you hand me my pants?" he asked politely.

Krystal hesitated for a moment before reaching for the said article of clothing and handing it to him. Keeping his back to her, out of modesty, Fox removed himself from the water before slipping his metal legs through the sleeves of his pants. After making himself decent, he sat down beside the blue vixen and rolled up one of his pants legs.

"These are artificial limbs. The whole leg is nothing but metal, wires, and circuitry. And no, before you think it, my people don't have metal legs." He looked at her with a teasing smile, to which she rolled her eyes at. "You know those ships we fly in?" Krystal nodded. "Well you see, they can move really fast. So fast in fact, that if we were to fly at top speed on this planet, the blood in our bodies would be drained to our feet, causing us to pass out. So, in order to stop that from happening…we cut off our legs and replaced them with these metal ones."

Krystal looked shocked. He cut his own legs off?! "Why?" she asked quietly.

He shrugged and rolled his pant leg down, "We were at war. Andross wasn't gonna let up at all. It was either let him win and let our lives be run by a tyrant, or sacrifice a part of our bodies for our futures." He looked at her seriously before cracking a smirk.

"Wanna know the worst part?"

She leaned in a bit closer to make sure she heard him clearly.

"Two years ago, they actually developed a device that deals with that issue. So now people no longer have to replace their legs to fly. Lucky me huh?" he had said with a rueful chuckle. He wasn't honestly that upset about losing his legs. Yeah the yearly maintenance was a pain, but hell that was free, so who actually cared?

She did apparently. Enough that she reached down to rest her hand on his prosthetic, a sorrowful look lining her pretty face. He couldn't feel her hand on his leg. Technology wasn't that advanced. He simply gestured, coaxing her to look him in the eye, which he gave a reassuring grin.

"Hey, don't worry about it. It's not that bad actually. Yeah I can't feel grass under my feet, but hey, I don't need to worry about breaking my legs ever again."

She stared at him, her expression warming a slight bit. "Does Slippy also have these…legs?"

"Yep. About half of the forces that are on their way are in the same boat as me and Slip."

She looked lost for words at that moment. On the one hand, she felt for all those people who had such an important part of themselves ripped from them by fate. On the other, she did not fully know what circumstances that forced them to make a decision. Would her people be able to make the same choice if their fates were switched? While their minds were their treasured gifts, the body was the temple that housed them. To cut off parts of themselves and replace them so easily…she couldn't actually fathom such an existence.

Fox saw the conflict of thought clear as day on her face. He took that moment to stand and finish dressing himself. After dressing himself he looked back over to the blue vixen before calling out, "Trust me Krystal, while we all appreciate the concern, it's not necessary. It happened. The only thing that matters for us now, is that we keep moving forward."

She didn't look relieved. Not in the least.

However, now she knew it didn't plague him, and wouldn't plague others for generations forward. So, she picked herself off the ground, and put on a smile for him.

"All washed up?"

He nodded once, before a rumble came from his belly.

"Oof. If you're still in the mood to thank me, another one of those…jesks?..Would sit real well." He said with a chuckle.

She let out a small giggle before taking his hand and leading him back to the village, "They're called _jhesksa_. And I can certainly cook one up for you and Slippy."

* * *

"They haven't left that village yet correct?"

"No sir, boss. It looks like they're making repairs to one of those Arwings."

A pause of silence filled the room.

"Status report on the captives. How many do we have?"

"Sir. By our last count taken last night, we have a total of six-hundred and eighty-three total. With four-hundred and seven females of estimated ages sixteen, Cornerian standard years, or higher. One-hundred and forty-nine small boys and one-hundred and twenty-seven small girls."

The raven nodded before pressing a button at his terminal, pulling up a screen of a greying cat with a chipped ear, "Doc. How are the shuttle preps coming."

"Should be done within an hour boss."

"Good. We have what we came for. Start loading the cargo and prepping for evac. Do the fighters know the plan?"

"Yessir. One captive per fighter as ordered sir."

"Excellent. By this time tomorrow I want all crafts operating and ready to leave planetside. They are to head STRAIGHT for The Market."

"Yessir."

The Raven cut communication then and started his way to his own ship, his second falling behind him shortly. A grin spread over his beak as he thought of the next day, and the dumb looks on each Cornerian soldiers face when they figured out his plan.

* * *

And boom second chapter. Alright a couple things.

1: the jhesksas are _never_ gonna be explained so don't ask. Just think about weird plump bunnies with two sets of eyes and longer tails.

2: As stated earlier the mistakes from last chapter should be fixed with this one. If not then I'm fixing them before I even START to flesh out the next chapter.

Hope you all enjoyed. Have a good day.


End file.
